A/n- here it is people, the chapter that spins everything for a loop. (bounces with excitement) whatever I said before was lies; this is no doubt my favorite chapter so far. Enjoy!

Chapter 23- Dreamscape

Ed awoke with a start and looked around, wondering what had roused him. Then it came again, out of the darkness; someone was screaming.

He grabbed his wand from the table next to his bed and whispered, "Lumos," so he could see. The rest of the dorm was waking now as he recognized from where the screams were coming and rushed to Harry's bedside to try and wake him.

Harry's bellows died as he awoke on his own in a cold sweat, Ed holding his wand above his face in alarm.

"Harry! What in—are you alright?" the alchemist asked in concern.

"I'm—I'm fine," the boy-who-lived replied, sitting up shakily, "It was—just a dream…"

"Just a dream?" came Ron's skeptical voice, "Sounded more like a bloody nightmare."

"I'll be fine," Harry assured everyone again, including the other occupants of the dorm who were now awake and watching, giving his friends a look that clearly said, 'I'll tell you in the morning'.

Thus, the night passed without further catastrophe and morphed silently into dawn.

However much Harry would have liked to forget his dream, he knew by the stern and expecting looks he received at breakfast from Ed, Ron, and Hermione, who had somehow found out, there was no such chance. He tried to ignore the looks, but Ed spoke up.

"So," the alchemist pushed, "About that dream…"

"Ok," Harry said, more for the sake of readying himself than to lead into the dream, "It was about Voldemort. He was doing some sort of…ritual, I think. Wormtail was there as well—he was holding…a baby…"

Harry trailed off and shivered; the dream hadn't been pleasant the first time and it was less so talking about it.

"And?" Hermione prompted.

"There was a…circle," Harry paused and his eyes settled on Ed, "on the baby's stomach and then a flash of blue light."

"Shit," Ed cursed in a low whisper, "He summoned the Gate, didn't he?"

Harry knew the question was rhetorical, but he nodded anyway, the sick feeling in his stomach that had escalated earlier, dropping.

"I saw it. Voldemort went through it with Wormtail. All I could see was bright yellow light, and then these black…creatures came out of nowhere and latched on to them. Voldemort pushed Wormtail behind him and the creatures swarmed him. Voldemort got through, but Wormtail…that's when I woke up."

Ron looked back and forth between the uneasy faces Ed, Harry and Hermione wore, skepticism in his next words.

"Well, we don't even know if this dream is real," he said, "I mean, since when does Voldemort know alchemy?"

"He has a point," Hermione said, "It wouldn't be the first time…what I mean is, he could be luring us into a trap like…last year..."

"Yah," Harry's voice lowered profoundly, "I know…"

"I could look into it," Edward suggested, "See if I could scry something. Do you remember anything about the place Voldemort ended up in?"

"No, sorry, all I saw was black," Harry replied, "I think it was night."

"Let's look at this figuratively," Hermione interjected to try and keep everyone's spirits up, "Let's say Voldemort is in your world. How did he ever find a way to get there?"

"The question isn't how—that's easy—it's why. Why would Voldemort want to go to Amestris?" Ed corrected.

"I can think of several reasons, and none of them are good news," Harry answered, shaking his head.

"Wait—how would you-know-who have found out about—" Ron began in confusion.

"Mr. Elric," a deep voice interrupted.

All four turned to see Professor Hoenheim walking over, a somber look set on his face and his eyes hidden behind the reflection of his square-framed glasses.

"Yes professor?" Ed replied to keep up his father's masquerade for the rest of the Gryffindor table.

"Can I see you in my office?" Hoenheim asked, glancing briefly at his son's friends, "As well as you three?"

Several "Yes Professor" responses later, the five relocated themselves to the Defense Against the Dark Arts office and sat down to business. Hoenheim sighed and shook his head before he began, obviously worried.

"The Headmaster interrogated Envy again after you left," he told them, "We uncovered some pretty grim information, I might add."

"Hold on—what about last night?" Ron asked in clear confusion.

"Oh, right; we never told you," Harry realized, going into an explanation next.

"So then, this Envy person—thing—must have told Voldemort how to get to Amestris," Hermione concluded.

"Right," Edward said, nodding.

"What do you mean by—" Hoenheim began, before being interrupted by Harry.

"I had a dream…it's happened before. We're not sure if it's true, but…"

"If it is, Amestris is in danger," Ed finished.

That day during lunch, after spending an entire morning worrying endlessly about Al and his friends in Amestris, not to mention Amestris in general, Ed spent the period in the Room of Requirement scrying for answers. However, he found no evidence of hardships in his hometown, Central, or East City. If Voldemort was wandering the alchemic world, he was keeping a low profile.

The day ended swiftly with the foursome thinking that perhaps Voldemort had been sending a trap. That is, until Harry's screams woke Ed for the second time in as many nights.

Harry was awake by the time Edward arrived by his bedside. He said nothing at first and merely grabbed Ed's wrist, looking up at him in horror as he breathed deeply.

"What is it?" Ed demanded, desperate from the way Harry stared at him.

"Voldemort is…scry…scry Al," Harry said incompletely, his voice morbidly quiet.

Ed got the message and scrambled for his wand. Calming his emotions was difficult, but he forced his fear down his throat and called upon the feeling necessary.

Al appeared, alive and well, and the anxiety dropped a notch in Ed's stomach. However, it didn't last long, for a dreadful scene was unveiling itself.

Everything was dark, besides the lantern Al held. Then a blue glow materialized in mid-air, revealing the looming face of a snake-like man.

Lieutenant Bloch stood in front of Al as a shield, armed with a gun pointing at none other than the Dark Lord himself. Ed had seen pictures of the former Tom Riddle, but the new-and-improved version seemed to have mutated into a demon-like creature; he did not enjoy the sight.

Neither did he enjoy what was happening. Bloch was warning Voldemort to stay away, lest he be shot, but the Dark Lord merely smiled twistedly and advanced, holding out his wand.

Al held his hands over his ears as Bloch fired, dropping the lantern, which clattered to the stone ground; however, the bullet bounced off its target with an easily muttered charm. Voldemort's smile widened.

"My turn," he said maliciously.

A jet of green light erupted from his outstretched wand and embedded itself in Bloch's chest. The military man went rigid and fell to the ground, lifeless before he hit it.

Al cried out for the man protecting him and knelt by his side, allowing himself to grieve for an instant. Then he clapped his hands and touched the ground, forming a lance with his transmutation. He stood and faced his enemy jaw set and determined, tears lingering in his eyes.

"What do you want?" he yelled, holding his weapon en garde.

"Must I repeat myself? I already told you what I want," Voldemort replied, studying the lance with a touch of humor in his cold, slitted eyes, "Now, is that supposed to be threatening?"

"It can't be done!" Al protested, "I told you that! I've been trying to get Brother back for months!"

"In that case…yes, there is no other way…" the Dark Lord muttered to himself, his attention jerking back to the frightened boy in front of him, "You tell your brother he'd better find a way back here fast, lest he wants to return to a massacre!"

Voldemort raised his wand and in a flash of blue light, Al was gone.

A/n- no angry mobs for the cliffy please—it was too dramatic to pass up. I guess I was feeling the drama when I wrote this. That whole, "Amestris is in danger" line was kinda cheesy when you think about it. Hehe.